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African scientists have filmed a tiger fish jumping out of a lake to catch a bird in mid-flight.

The fish's whole body comes out of the water when it attacks the swallow, the journal Nature reported. It is the first report of a freshwater fish preying on birds.

In a study published in the January issue of the Journal of Fish Biology, researchers from the North-West University in Potchefstroom, South Africa, said during their time at the lake in the Mapungubwe National Park, they saw a fish jump to catch a bird successfully 20 times. The researchers were in the area to study migration and tiger fish habitats and just happened to see them eat the birds.

"The first reaction was one of pure joy, because we realized that we were spectators to something really incredible and unique," researcher Nico Smit told the journal Nature.